Weakest Beast Tamer Gets All SSS Dragons

Chapter 383 - Taming the Distraction - 5

Lin stopped abruptly on a thick branch, switched to her crane, and launched not forward but backward, directly toward Kieran who was pursuing her at full speed.

The maneuver was so unexpected that Kieran had no time to change direction. His momentum carried him forward like a missile while Lin passed beneath him, using her reverse impulse to grab his transformed legs as she went by.

The additional weight and sudden trajectory change caused Kieran to lose control of his flight completely.

It was exactly what Lin had been waiting for.

She, now in her crane form, rose to kick Kieran in mid-air, and for the first time in the battle managed to connect a solid hit. Her foot, wrapped in bestial energy, impacted against the flyerʼs ribs with devastating force, sending him crashing toward the ground in an uncontrolled spiral.

Lin followed from above, but Kieran managed to recover with a powerful gust at the last moment, his survival instincts overriding the pain. The impact still jarred him, leaves and debris swirling in the chaotic winds his panic had created.

♢♢♢♢

«Do you realize we donʼt have time?» Ren asked while creating distance from the scorpion, his crystalline armor gleaming as he moved.

The transformed creature pursued him with primal intensity, each step leaving deep impressions in the forest floor. Its pincers snapped at the air where Ren had been moments before, the sound like massive rock scissors cutting through nothing.

But this time, the mushroom didnʼt respond immediately. Ren could feel the small creature processing massive amounts of information, connecting patterns that encompassed much more than this individual battle. The mental connection between them hummed with unprecedented activity.

«I just need to touch her for ten seconds,» the mushroom finally admitted, its mental voice carrying reluctant necessity. «I donʼt like asking you to do this again, but if youʼve done it before, it should be an option... Throw me!»

Ren understood immediately. If the mushroom could work with Lin, then he could face the scorpion alone while the small creature did... whatever it was planning to do.

He fired three quick light rays toward the scorpion, not to cause significant damage but to create the necessary distance. The explosions of purifying energy and resulting pain blinded the creature momentarily, giving Ren the seconds he needed to execute his plan.

«Teacher!» he shouted, while the mushroom materialized completely in his palm, its tiny form pulsing with determination. «Catch this! Ten seconds of contact!»

Lin, who had been maneuvering around an increasingly wounded Kieran among the trees, looked toward Ren just in time to see the small mushroom flying toward her in a perfect arc. The tiny creature seemed to glow against the forestʼs dappled shadows.

She was already gaining advantage in her aerial duel, and perhaps maintaining the status quo was the better idea, but trusting Ren had never seemed like a bad decision before.

She switched to her crane, extending her transformed arms to create a wider landing surface. The mushroom glided toward her like a small golden light in the forestʼs twilight, its tiny arms spread like a miniature glider.

But Kieran had seen the exchange, recognizing the significance even if he didnʼt understand the details.

A gust of wind struck the small mushroom mid-flight, deflecting it several meters to the left. The tiny creature fought against the air current, its little arms flailing furiously against the invisible force that sought to deny its mission.

«Damn flying bully!» Lin snarled, changing direction immediately.

The mushroom hit the ground but didnʼt give up, using its small legs to run toward where Lin was positioned. Its determination was almost comical, a tiny being refusing to accept defeat despite the overwhelming forces arrayed against it.

But Kieran wasnʼt going to make things easy.

Another wind gust launched the mushroom farther away, the small creature tumbling through the air like a leaf in a storm. Lin leaped, switching to panther for momentum from a branch, then back to crane to achieve greater gliding distance.

Her fingers brushed the small mushroom, almost closing around it, but Kieran was already launching a third wind attack that struck her and separated them again. The precision of his interference was maddening.

Lin growled with frustration, her usually composed demeanor cracking under the pressure. This bastard was playing specifically to keep them separated, as if he understood that something critically important was happening.

She changed tactics completely. Instead of directly pursuing the mushroom, she began using trees as shields against Kieranʼs wind gusts. She moved in a zigzag pattern, forcing the flyer to guess from which direction she would attack next.

The mushroom, meanwhile, had gotten back up regardless of the failed attempts, driven by single-minded purpose. It had an objective and intended to fulfill it, no matter how many times it was knocked down.

♢♢♢♢

Meanwhile, Ren faced the transformed scorpion without his mushroomʼs assistance. Without the small creature in his system, he couldnʼt generate the big purifying light rays that had been so effective before.

He only had his enhancements, especially his brute strength, and his crystalline claws…

But he needed nothing else against this brute, the abomination had been a harder foe. Ren shot forward.

The scorpion launched itself toward him too with pincers extended, each one the size of Renʼs head and gleaming with chitinous menace. Its power was brutal, 240% strength multiplying every movement into something potentially lethal.

Ren dodged to the left, his own 250% strength giving him the speed necessary to avoid the pincers by mere centimeters. But the scorpion was larger, more massive, its reach considerably longer than his. In a direct power fight, the mathematics werenʼt in his favor.

Especially considering he was an eleven-year-old child against what had been a fully grown, completely transformed adult.

But Ren had advantages that raw power couldnʼt account for.

When the scorpion attacked again, Ren didnʼt try to block or completely dodge. Instead, he used his limited elemental controls and his learned mana perception to predict the enemyʼs attacks, the creature was operating on reduced intelligence, making its patterns readable.

He used his crystalline claws to redirect the attack, applying force at the correct angle to deflect the pincers toward a nearby tree.

The pincers buried themselves deeply in the wood, becoming momentarily stuck as the scorpionʼs momentum worked against it.

Ren took immediate advantage, his claws finding the joints in the scorpionʼs exoskeleton. He couldnʼt completely penetrate the creatureʼs natural armor, but he could find the weak points where sections connected, exploiting the gaps that even abyssal transformation couldnʼt eliminate.

Moreover, although Ren couldnʼt use purifying light without the mushroomʼs direct guidance, he could at least simulate what he remembered, making his attacks slightly more effective than normal against the abyssal beast.

The scorpion roared from pain, freeing its pincers from the tree with brute force at last. Wood splintered and flew as the creature tore itself free, but Ren had already leaped backward, maintaining distance.

The transformed creature wasnʼt fighting intelligently. Its attacks were powerful but predictable. Ren could read its movements, anticipate attack patterns with growing confidence.

A strike toward the right. Ren dodged, counter-attacked with his claws toward the articulated elbow.

A thrust with both pincers. Ren rolled underneath, slashing toward the exposed tendons in the rear legs.

The scorpionʼs tail curved over its head, the stinger dripping venom that hissed when it hit the ground. Ren continued forward, inside the arc of attack, too close for the tail to reach him effectively.

It was a deadly dance of precision against brute power. Ren couldnʼt allow any attack to connect completely, because any one of them could seriously injure him. But he also couldnʼt cause massive damage to the scorpion with each exchange.

It was a war of attrition, and Ren hoped Lin and his mushroom would finish their experiment before he exhausted himself completely.

«This better work,» Ren muttered while dodging another combination of attacks. «Because Iʼm not likely going to be able to do this forever.»

♢♢♢♢

«Ren,» the mushroomʼs voice suddenly sounded tense in his mind through their connection at a distance, for the first time, which would be a joyful situation since when outside it generally didnʼt speak to him and excluded him from the connection to do whatever it wanted.

This time was different, but the reason...

«I perceive multiple mana signatures approaching. Reinforcements.»

Renʼs heart sank while he deflected another scorpion thrust. The patrols had perhaps noticed their comrades were taking too long, or maybe they had sensed the combat energy from a distance.

Either way, time was running out.

Kieran seemed to realize it a moment later, his expression changing from frustration to something resembling relief. ”Ah, it seems my colleagues finally decided to investigate whatʼs taking us so long.”

A cruel smile spread across his face, revealing teeth that had grown sharper during his partial corruption. ”I hope youʼve finished your little games, because this is about to get interesting.”

Lin caught the implicit threat while continuing her semi-aerial dance. Reinforcements meant they had minutes, maybe less, before being completely overwhelmed by superior numbers.

But they also knew they couldnʼt simply flee. Not yet.

Kieran knew that too, so he returned to the extreme defensive that would ensure he could hold out until reinforcements arrived. His wind control shifted from aggressive pursuit to protective barriers.

But Lin saw the opportunity in his repositioning. Kieran was concentrating on creating a new wind barrier to stop her frontal approach. But that meant he couldnʼt control all the minor currents she had been using.

She launched directly toward him again, knowing Kieran would expect to repel her. Instead, at the last moment, she switched to panther and dropped into a diving fall toward the ground, using gravity as her ally.

The mushroom, following the minor currents that Kieran couldnʼt spare attention to control, arrived just as Lin extended her hand.

Her fingers closed around the small creature with desperate strength.

«Ten seconds!» the mushroom immediately shouted, the mental connection establishing with shocking ease. «Donʼt let go of me no matter what happens!»